Adhesive tape has been used for hundreds of years to bind articles together. Indeed, at the consumer level, in commerce, medicine, in industry, and in many other fields, tapes, labels and other adhesive-backed products are used daily. In many cases, the adhesive-backed product may be placed on an article to be removed at a future date. The difficulty in such removal is widely recognized, often requiring the use of a fingernail or other means to detach an edge of the substrate. Lost time, resulting in damage and frustration are the overwhelming result. Medical tape is a prime example, requiring placement of the tape on a patient's skin, on bandages, or on medical articles for use with a patient. However, the medical tape is typically removed when the bandage or medical article is removed. Removal thereof is often difficult, and typically requires an edge to be removed first, which may be difficult and result in frustration for the medical staff and discomfort for the patient.
While a tab at one margin of the adhesive-backed product would provide for easy future removal thereof, attempts to address this problem have not yet been fully successful. Approaches have included, among others, liquids applied to selectively neutralize the adhesive, mechanical folding devices that hazard getting stuck in the adhesive, and separate rolls of paper tabs to be applied to the product to form a non-sticking segment on the adhesive-backed product. A need, therefore, exists for an apparatus to create a tab on an adhesive-backed product that may be utilized for the removal thereof after placement on an article.
Moreover, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products that is simple and effective. Specifically, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products that consistently creates a tab on adhesive-backed products for easily grasping the same and removing the adhesive-backed products from articles adhered thereto. In addition, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products that forms a tab without adding material to the adhesive-backed products.
Further, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products that may be utilized with a plurality of types of adhesive-backed products, such as tapes, films, labels, and/or other like adhesive-backed products. Still further, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products that is easy to adjust for use with the plurality of types of adhesive-backed products.
In addition, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products having a tab-forming cycle that quickly forms a non-adhesive tab without binding the adhesive-backed product in the apparatus, and does not itself adhere to the adhesive disposed on the adhesive-backed products. Moreover, a need exists for an apparatus and tab-forming process for adhesive-backed products that may form a non-adhesive tab and allow a user to designate and choose a specific length of the adhesive-backed product for use thereof. Further, a need exists for an apparatus that can form a non-adhesive tab on adhesive-backed products, but also allows the user to choose to withdraw any length of tape with no tab at all.